WASHINGTON, Feb 24 (Bernama-dpa) -- Employees of the US development aid agency USAID will be placed on leave from Sunday night, the agency said, as reported by German Press Agency (dpa).
All "direct hire personnel" working anywhere in the world for the agency, with the exception of employees in critical positions, will be put on "administrative leave" from 11.59 pm Sunday (0459 GMT Monday) a statement on USAID's website said.
"Concurrently, USAID is beginning to implement a Reduction-in-Force that will affect approximately 1,600 USAID personnel with duty stations in the United States," the statement added.
The plans were first revealed earlier this month, before being paused by a judge. However, Judge Carl Nichols on Friday lifted the temporary restraining order he had put in place earlier in February to allow a legal dispute to continue.
USAID is one of the largest aid agencies in the world, employing around 10,000 people, two-thirds of whom work outside the United States. It is responsible for doling out much of the US government's humanitarian assistance to developing countries and countries in crisis.
Trump has repeatedly claimed it is run by "radical lunatics" seeking to hinder his America First foreign policy agenda.
He froze the agency's funds in January pending an internal review, impacting a vast array of initiatives around the globe.
--BERNAMA-dpa
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